Literature Search

Literature Search

Introduction

In addition to doing a thorough literature search early on in the research process, in order to identify a breadth of good quality references relevant to a specific topic, it is important to continue to look for relevant reading throughout the project to ensure that nothing is missed and have to keep up to date with new publications. So, A literature search is an ongoing part of your work that a systematic and also thorough search of all types of published literature.

The information that is available of electronically has meant that literature searching has become complex than in the past, although the speed and convenience at which sources can be accessed has also increased. Not only is there a phenomenal amount of information available which you can retrieve from your own computer or mobile phone through the internet, but also there is a wide variety of ways in which you can search for this information. The choices can be quite daunting when first starting on your research which is why most universities offer courses on information management. Doing a course such as this is time well spent and will help you to identify the most suitable search tools for your particular area of sure to allow the library to your friend and become comfortable about approaching the librarians for assistance and academic discipline. They will not be able to conduct your searches for you but they can offer guidance – and there may be subject, specialists who can point you in the right direction for your research topic. Even if you are studying at a distance, there is likely to be a help desk you can phone or email for advice.

There are some reason to make a thorough literature search, in the first you need to identify the field and context that is specific in which your work is situated. Your reading will be exploratory at the beginning of your literature search. You have read around the subject you may be uncertain about you may have thinking about something you wish to investigate focus and the focus and therefore the exact background in which you wish to place your work. It can give you ideas about the focal point of your research and the wider context in which it will sit. Specifically, it will help you identify the type of data you might use and collect, sites of data collection, how you might analyse this data and the sample size.

The next purpose of the literature search is to identify key people, organizations and texts which are relevant to your research. Relevant organizations might include academic, government, and professional bodies. There will be key journal in your field in which peer-reviewed articles are published. You should identify which journals are relevant for you and keep referring to them on a regular basis throughout the research for significant publications. You may find it useful to search for all their published work. It is clear a range of purposes is served by searching the literature. As stated above, it is crucial to include literature searching as an ongoing part of the research process, although your purposes will shift from being exploratory to becoming more focused as your reading progresses.

Sources of information

In this part, when conductiong academic research you will not be limited to one particular type of information source or publication but will want to investigate the full range of relevant materials. We have to consider the different information sources that are available. The most common sources are books, journal articles, Published literature reviews of a field, ‘grey literature’, and web sites.

Books are usually attend to be the first port of call for many new researchers as a means of beginning the exploratory journey in and around the field. University library bookshelves are lined with books in printed form and, increasingly, it is possible to access many of them electronically as ebooks. It is now possible to read many books on a portable ebook reader, such as a kindle, the device produced by the international online retailer, amazon. Whether accessed in printed or electronic form, there is a variance of types of book you may refer to as part of your work. The most important are.

• Textbooks contain the foundation principles, concepts and theories of a field. They have to contain agreed knowledge in a field and information which is generally accepted as being commonly agreed knowledge in a

• Specialised books may include a collection of chapters written by different authors on a particular specialist theme with an overall editor or editorial board that has collected together and reviewed the contributions for the book. For example report on research completed for a PhD thesis or a specific theoretical area of a field of research and papers from a conference may be published as conference proceedings.

• Reference books such as dictrionaries, encyclopedias, directories are used to find specific information or definitions. These are now likely to be available in electronic and/or printed format. Electronic versions are often accessible both online and on CD ROM.

Journal articles has a specific set of purposes and an intended audience, all of which are usually articulated in each issue that is published. It contain collections of peer-reviewed academic articles which are written by different researchers or practitioners in a particular field. It have to ensuring its quality because of the peer review process means that other academics or professionals in the field have reviewed and made recommendations about each article published. Journals are now available electronically include the most recent ideas in circulation in a discipline.

Published literature reviews of a field, These may be in the form of either a journal article or a  book and provide a summary and theory in a field and also synthesis of research. They are known as systematic reviews and are usually undertaken by a team of academics and professionals to investigate a clearly focused aim or question. Organizations, such as the Cochrane collaboration in the healthcare field, provide a collection of systematic reviews to inform practice. A published literature review provides a useful introduction and overview of a field, but it is important not to rely solely on these as, when doing your thesis or dissertation literature review, you should demonstrate that you are able to identify and interpret the relevant original sources yourself.

‘grey literature’, Other important sources of information are collected under the umbrella term of ‘grey literarure’. The term relates to material that is not published commercially and is difficult to obtain through the usual bibliographical channels and book-selling. Generally, grey literature includes :

• reports, theses and dissertations
• research in progress
• leaflets and posters
• conference proceedings
• media reports, patents, letters, and diaries.

Web sites, Some different types of information can be found through judgments about the quality of the material accessed have to be made on an individual basis and web sites. Some examples of the types of web sites that could be used as sources of information are mentioned here. Professional organizations such as the British Psychological Association can provide a wealth of information on publications, conferences and relevant press releases. UK government sites such as that of the Department for Education provide access to policy documents, reports and resources.

Typically, individual academics have their own web pages with their professional details and interests as well as lists of their publications. If you have identified a particular author as key for your research, accessing their personal web page can take you to recent publications which may be important for your work.

Evaluating online sources of information

Anybody can put information on the internet and the material is not necessarily subject to peer-review quality checks. So, all sources of information should be evaluated carefully. For a list of references in your academic writing, you should be able to include both the author and date for every source, if there is not traceable it is important to consider carefully whether the reference should be used, as a web site does not always display this information clearly, the points that follow should be addressed to assess its suitability as a source to cite in your work.

Tools for finding relevant sources

As stated, many of the information sources you require may be available in electronic form, for example, an increasing number of journals are available electronically through your library web page or open access networks. There may be links to a journal article or electronic version of a book from an individual academic’s personal web page.

Having summarized the main types of information sources that you are likely to consult, in this part we move on to consider the main tools you can use it initiate your searches for this information. It is important to spend some time becoming aware of and familiar with the search options available to you as the efficient use of these tools is an essential part of the research process. Broadly speaking, the search tools available can be divided into the following categories:

• Internet search engines.
• Professional organization web sites.
• Bibliographical databases.
• Open access databases.

Tracking your literature search

Table 1.  a checklist of your literature search

The checklist template allow you to track and record the literature search. In particular, it is important to keep a clear record of which key word searches you have made and in which catalogues, search engines, databases, and subject gateways. As noted, completing the checklist is an ongoing task, if you are in the early stages of your research, it is important to familiarize yourself with the type of record you will need to keep.

Source :

The Literature Review – A Step-by-Step Guide for Students, Second Editions

( Diana Ridley )